Community Fund Unveils £115,000 Wind Fall for Local Projects

Decisions made by local panel to maximise benefits for nearby communities

Strong interest “demonstrates local need” for targeted grant support.

Twelve key projects at the heart of their communities will share an almost £115,000 windfall, thanks to the first ever grants made by the Triton Knoll Community Fund.

A volunteer-led First Responders charity along with projects to provide safe community play areas and the refurbishment of a key church hall, are among the recipients of the new, locally-targeted fund.

The first Triton Knoll awards are from the £500,000 “Construction Fund” which operates during the two years of construction of our onshore electrical system. The fund officially opened in August 2018 and aims to support locally important projects. It is part of the wider Triton Knoll Community Fund which will deliver a total of £1.5m into communities closest to the project’s onshore construction works and infrastructure.

Triton Knoll project director Julian Garnsey said he was delighted to see the range and diversity of projects that were successful in the first round: “I am so pleased to see such important local projects at the heart of this first round of funding awards. We always aimed to ensure the fund delivered maximum benefit to our closest neighbouring communities, and that’s exactly what this first round has done. A huge ‘congratulations’ to all those successful projects and we look forward to a second bumper round of applications in the next round.”

Communities across the area of Triton Knoll’s onshore electrical system are now beginning to benefit from the first awards, from Hogsthorpe, Anderby and Brothertoft to Swineshead, Great Hale and Donington. All applications are reviewed and determined by a panel of local people to ensure the best decisions are made for nearby communities.

Sue Fortune, of Lincolnshire Community Foundation, which administers the fund, said she was encouraged by the response from local groups: “The level of interest we received demonstrates that there is definitely a strong local need for this type and level of local grant support, especially where groups find it difficult to access appropriate and flexible support elsewhere.

“It’s been great to see such a range of really impactful projects coming forward during this first round and which can make a real difference right across our local communities. We’re already talking with other groups about the next round of funding, and we’d really like to encourage even more communities to think about how this flexible funding can be best used to support them.”

The next closing date for new applications is 1 May 2019, with the panel meeting on 19 June 2019.